We got to the backyard in Verona, New Jersey early and set up Wesley's Pokémon birthday party before anyone walked in. Stations went down, the catching table went up, and we laid out the path for the corrupted Pokéballs so the hour could start as soon as the guests arrived.
They showed up to a party that was already ready. We did names, the kids shouted happy birthday to Wesley, and we walked them through the yard so they could start collecting.
Then we turned them loose. Most of them went straight to the grab-a-claws.
We had set that station before the first guest arrived: claws waiting, a path through the grass, and the corrupted Pokéballs ready to move. Kids used the claws to carry those balls from one end of the path to the other, set them down, and came right back to do it again. That was the station they wanted. They finished a carry, passed the claws, and got back in line. When someone left for another game, they usually found their way back here.
Wesley ran that path with them. He would finish a carry, step away with what he had earned, and come back to the claws for another pass. The rest of his hour looked the same. He wanted Sableye, and he only wanted Sableye. He repeated the stations, collected Pokéballs, and brought them to the catching table until that one was his.
Around the claws, the rest of the yard stayed in use. Kids threw for more chances, sent a disc across the grass, and stopped at the prize wheel or the coin drop. Pokéballs came from all of it. One kid never turned his in. He wanted as many as he could collect, and he spent the hour adding to the pile.
Other kids took what they had caught and battled a friend. The winner added a Pokémon. The other kid kept the one they had walked over with. Wesley stayed on Sableye until he had it.
When we called time we counted every team. One kid had twenty-four Pokémon. The kids with the most got crowned Master Pokémon Trainers, and Wesley closed the hour with Sableye.
Happy birthday, Wesley. We sat down to pizza and cupcakes after the count, then sent every guest home with party favors.
Stay Adventurous,
Ginny
